Exhibition 'Live, coexist and survive. International Brigades and multilingualism'

What's it about

This exhibition is the result of the research by historians Ramon Naya Ortega and Lourdes Prades Artigas, from the University of Barcelona, on language learning and the fight against illiteracy among the international volunteers who participated in the Spanish Civil War. It is an innovative study, both for its contents and for the historiographical interpretation that the curators bring to it. The exhibition shows how such a heterogeneous multilingual community was able to live, coexist and survive in such a brief and intense period. Despite the diversity of languages and cultures, the volunteers shared a common denominator: the commitment to fight for an ideal. This will to unity led them to overcome language barriers. As they themselves said: "We speak different languages but one same language." The exhibition has been built from archival sources, memoirs and press from the time, mainly produced by the brigadiers themselves, both at the front and in the rear. These materials constitute a primary source of great value for the study of multilingualism and allow us to delve into the pedagogical, cultural and human dimension of the International Brigades. The exhibition will occupy the barracks space, the rooms of the old Military Museum.

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